Malcolm X

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... Malcolm X!

Original image located here. Accessed 5th June 2026

Surprisingly I haven't seen any of the filmography of one Spike Lee. The immediate impression is that he is a black movie director making movies for a black audience - which subsequently places me in a considerable disadvantage. 
Still I've been meaning to watch this as a) I seen Denzel Washington in numerous movies and he never disappoints, b) I am curious to find out more about a historical figure that I have heard a lot about but only in name and c) I am willing to consider a perspective different from my own.

But what does it matter? Turns out this movie was something unexpected: A biopic that transcends it's intent and becomes something more epic. I mean it worked for Lawrence of Arabia...
Seriously though, this is very effective as a character study, taking us through Malcolm's life, highlighting key points and showing his passion for civil rights. His speeches, teachings and white-hot rage (pun unintended) are all incorporated and even moments when his views are challenged (i.e. his pilgrimage to Mecca and what happens afterward) are included. Indeed, even if the widely-known image of Malcolm X is one of anger, this movie does indeed go to great lengths to show there was a humanity tied to him. 
When one watches a biopic, one gets the feeling that they are watching a propaganda piece but I never got that that with this movie - which means it did it's job better then anyone could've hoped for. 

Funny thing: I did find the first hour a bit of a mess but it really got more focused once Malcolm went to prison, had a religious revelation and began heading on his path of being a civil rights activist. But having typed that sentence out, it would appear that that was the point....

Sister Act

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Sister Act!

Original image located here. Accessed 14th July 2023

I recall this movie being a huge hit in the early nineties and it being instrumental in making Whoopi Goldberg a huge star. Personally I have only seen bits and pieces of it but have never sat all the way through it. Little did I know that Kiera had plans for me...

Watching it now, what strikes me is that the strength of this movie is not the murder plot, nor the humour (I will admit however the Catholic joke got a good laugh out of me), nor the general premise of poking fun at the stodginess of nuns. No, the strength of this movie is the musical numbers. They are snappy and there is some solid singing involved - indeed one could make the case this movie is an ancestor of the Pitch Perfect movies.
And that's enough for me

Man Bites Dog

And this week's Friday Night movie has been... Man Bites Dog (C'est arrivé près de chez vous)!

Original image located here. Accessed 24th March 2023

We got a challenge and a half here: A Belgian movie from the early nineties that has the reputation of being one of the most controversial movies ever made. If you, the person reading this, haven't heard of it then it's for a very good reason.
Well, I've seen movies in my time and I have certainly seen some unsettling stuff in my time, so there will be nothing left that some truly disturb me, right?

So what this movie is is the product of a group of movie fans: It tells the story of a film crew that follows a serial killer around as he.....does things.
Naturally, this is an amateur production and it shows: It is black and white, is cheaply shot and is relying on a strength of ideas.
Needless to say, it should come to no surprise that there is a lot of violence, black humour and obviously exists to provoke and challenge the audience.
Yet at the same time, this was a slog to get through. The mood was grim, the jokes are few and far between (at least for me) and the lead character isn't really likeable (although one gets the impression that was precisely the point). I mentioned above that i have seen some unsettling material in my time but this is less that and more dull. I should also point out that I was watching an edited version where the most nastiest moment was cut out (mercifully?)
It should be noted that this movie came out in 1992 - the same year that Quentin Tarantino announced himself to the world with Reservoir Dogs. I mention this becuase both that and this movie seem to share the same DNA. The difference is that Man Bites Dog comes across as Reservoir Dogs' dour goth cousin - but alas such a description sounds far more compelling than the actual movie.
Damn...

The Muppet Christmas Carol

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Muppet Christmas Carol!

Original image located here. Accessed 23th December 2022

Yeah I've already seen this one but it still ranks as my favourite interpretation of Charles Dickens' tale. That may sound absurd but I stand by it because:
a) Muppets are awesome
b) it retains Dickens' prose via Gonzo (as crazy as that sentence reads)
c) Michael Caine gives his all and is magnificent, proving that his insistence on doing it seriously paid off incredibly
d) It actually shows Scrooge learning from what the Spirits showed him
e) It has the scariest Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come

So yeah, I may have seen this before (multiple times in fact) but it never gets old and it has never been ravaged by the passage of time, 

Strictly Ballroom

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Strictly Ballroom!

Original image located here. Accessed 22nd April 2022

Thirty years ago, i recall this movie being a big deal. It was everywhere in advertising, was a box office hit and scooping numerous AFI awards. And it introduced the world to a director by the name of Baz Luhrmann.
Oh Baz Luhrmann - not one of my favorite film directors. I found him - as indicated by his follow ups William Shakespeare's Romeo+Juliet and Moulin Rouge - as the kind of guy who is obsessed with visuals, who is more concerned with style than substance, who directs like he's on a sugar high and knows his audience, a legion of squee-ing teenage girls, all too well.
I was going to be happy not seeing this movie but little did I know that Kiera had other plans...

But you know what? It's not that bad. No wait, scratch that: It's kinda good. It's funny, it's entertaining and - could it be? - Luhrmann's direction is reigned in enough to make the action on screen happen. In retrospect., this does seem a world away from what would happen with the afore-mentioned movies but the DNA is still there.
However lets be honest: the greatest selling point of this movie is the dancing and boy does this movie deliver. Say what you like about Paul Mercurio's limited acting ability but his dancing prowess is beyond compare. Also props to the Silverdome standing in for the climax.
Indeed, it makes me wonder what happened to this side of Baz Luhrmann. As the saying goes: constrictions inspire creativity so what happened to him in regards to his follow ups? Did success go to his head? Did he go crazy upon discovering larger budgets? Did he get replaced by a doppelganger? One can only wonder.

Braindead

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Braindead (Dead Alive)!

Original image located here. Accessed 16th October 2020

Like most of the world, I only knew of Kiwi director Peter Jackson through the Lord of the Rings trilogy. So it is somewhat inevitable that I would eventually take a trip to the low budget horror movies that Jackson was making before he struck gold with bringing Middle-Earth to the screen.

I have previously stated that I'm not a fan of slasher movies because they are populated with idiots - but saying that only misses the point. Because the whole point of slasher movies, and by extension it's cousin-in-horror the zombie movie, is seeing HOW the hapless fools on screen get taken out. And it is to this end that Braindead succeeds: The kills are indeed (and I can't believe i am typing this out) creative, bloody, gruesome and hilarious - and often all at once.
So there is certainly is a lot going for this movie with it's ingenious special effects, bonkers model design, pitch-black humor and enough blood to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool (apparently much of Jackson's pre-Lord of the Rings movies are a lot like this).
But personally, this movie strikes me as someone trying to remake Psycho but instead opted to do it drunk. And is all the better for it.

Army of Darkness

Last night I saw Army of Darkness.

Original image located here. Accessed 22nd October 2018

This isn't the first time I've seen this movie - which subsequently disqualifies it as a candidate for the Friday Night Movie. But when i first saw this movie it was my first exposure to the Evil Dead franchise - which in turn left me wondering what the hell is going on. Still, I have since seen it's predecessors, so revisiting this film would make for an even playing field, right?

Make no mistake, this is the silliest of the trilogy - to a point where it no longer has any resemblance to a horror movie. It also is the point where Ash's character solidifies into a sarcastic anti-hero he is best known for - but I've seen him, over the course of two movies, arrive to that point in time and yeah, I'd probably get quite irate too.
I spoke previously about how I'm confused as to how to react to such a horror/comedy hybrid but that doesn't seem to be the case here: Army of Darkness is clearly a comedy but for me, such an clear sense of identity comes at the cost of my interest. Still it was funny to me to see Patrica Tallman in it (wow, Lyta Alexander really let herself go!)

Singles

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Singles!

Original image located here. Accessed 21st October 2016

Well what can I say about this one? It's definitely a product of it's time but as a time capsule of early nineties Seattle and the music that came with it, it's kinda cool. There are some fun cameos (Tim Burton, Chris Cornell and three fifths of Pearl Jam) and it also helps that the movie itself is both funny and entertaining